Traffic congestion management when providing realtime information to service providers

ABSTRACT

Methods, systems, and arrangements facilitate information interexchange between a telecommunications network and an information service provider. For example, a business-to-business (B2B) engine includes one or more logic modules for interfacing with the telecommunications network and with the information service provider. The B2B engine facilitates the reporting of, e.g., realtime information from the telecommunications network to the information service provider. This realtime information may include subscriber unit location that is proactively sent by the subscriber unit to the B2B engine for forwarding to the information service provider. To avoid possibly congesting the telecommunications network, the B2B engine is empowered to monitor the number of proactively-transmitted location messages and to limit them if they exceed a defined threshold.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This U.S. Nonprovisional Application for Patent claims the benefit ofpriority from, and hereby incorporates by reference the entiredisclosure of, co-pending U.S. Provisional Application for Patent SerialNo. 60/235,142, filed Sep. 22, 2000.

This U.S. Nonprovisional Application for Patent is aContinuation-in-part of U.S. Nonprovisional applications for patent Ser.Nos. 09/755,942, 09/755,939, 09/755,947, 09/755,360, and 09/755,948, allof which were filed on Jan. 5, 2001. U.S. Nonprovisional applicationsfor patent Ser. Nos. 09/755,942, 09/755,939, 09/755,947, 09/755,360, and09/755,948 are hereby incorporated by reference in their entiretyherein.

BACKGROUND OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to a value-addedinformation-exchanging network service, and in particular, by way ofexample but not limitation, to a Business-to-Business (B2B) enginecapable of interfacing with both a telecommunications network and aservice provider for facilitating information interexchangetherebetween.

2. Background and Objects of the Present Invention

The growing accessibility of information on the Internet has made agreat variety of content available. Typically, users access this contentat a fixed home or office site through an Internet Service Provider(ISP). Content providers on the Internet forward their content, alongwith advertisements or other commercial information, through the ISPdirectly to the user. Whereas, some ISPs currently maintain cache, e.g.,Yahoo and America On Line (AOL) by providing additional content, mostISPs are purely conduits of information, and as such are not expected tohave increased value as this technology and service matures.

A concurrent, more recent development is wireless Internet access bymobile phone users. Due to the convergence of telecommunications and theInternet, a growing variety of devices are becoming multipurpose and arenow available to access the Internet wirelessly, e.g., cell phones,personal data assistants (PDAs) or other communications devices. As withISPs, however, Internet content providers are using existingtelecommunications equipment as a mere conduit for passing informationtherethrough, thereby marginalizing the perceived value of thesephysical connections owned by the telecommunications operators. Thisparadigm of operation is illustrated in FIG. 1 and is generallydesignated therein by the reference numeral 100, where a number ofcontent providers, e.g., restaurant information 105, weather information110 and other such portals 115, channel the respective data through a“pipe”, i.e., the telecom operators' equipment 120, to a realtime user.

In view of the high cost of telecommunications network infrastructureand the need to avoid perceived obsolescence, telecommunications systemoperators must restructure the interface between the content providerand user to better exploit advantages in the technological convergence.In particular, a system and methodology offering an alternative paradigmavoiding the marginalization of the telecommunications infrastructureand services and avoiding loss of identity is needed. In addition, theparadigm 100 of FIG. 1 fails to make use of any realtime informationwhich is inherently provided within a serving telecommunicationsnetwork, such as location status, pertaining to the mobile subscriber,an area which will be critical in numerous future applications.

Exemplary prior art methods related to the location and informationprovided to and from a mobile station includes U.S. Pat. No. 5,559,520which generally describes tracking the location change of a user using aGPS system and providing information from a dispatcher to the userregarding a vehicle's geographic coordinates.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,926,108 generally describes providing movie informationto a pager. The pager first request information from the system, whichin turn determines the pager's location and sends movie informationbased on his location and optionally reserve tickets for the pager user.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,131,028 generally describes providing a specificpredefined feature based on a user geographic location. These featurescould be location-based call forwarding or predefined businessestablishment directions.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,930,699 generally describes providing information abouta business based on a location of a mobile station. The cell identity isdetermined by the system and information regarding a business in thatarea is sent to the mobile station.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,091,956 generally describes a system that providesservices about places and events a mobile computer encounters in theircurrent location or potential destinations. The mobile computer isinformed of events related to places the user is willing to visit. Basedon this information, the mobile computer may respond, avoid entirely,communicate with other people, or modify his plans in view of suchevents.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,108,533 generally describes providing a mobile stationwith ability to search, using keywords, information in a database. Suchinformation might require the knowledge of the location of the mobilestation and search for the keyword provided by the mobile station inthat area location database.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,115,611 generally describes having an information centerconnected to a plurality of mobile terminals. The mobile terminalsaccessing location information as well as other information helpful tothe mobile terminal user from the information center. The informationcenter is used for accumulating information and/or services from themobile terminals and providing information to the mobile terminalrelated to the mobile terminal location information.

It is, therefore, an object of certain embodiment(s) of the presentinvention to provide a new system, scheme, and/or methodology for mobileInternet usage, which offer more value to the telecommunications networkoperators and better exploit technological advantages of the network.

It is a further object that the system, scheme, and/or methodology ofcertain embodiment(s) of the present invention better utilize therealtime information available in telecommunications networks aboutmobile subscribers and the content available, thereby leveraging thenetwork capabilities to generate revenue.

It is another object of certain embodiment(s) of the present inventionthat an enabler described herein leverage the realtime capabilities of atelecommunications network.

It is an additional object of certain embodiment(s) of the presentinvention that an enabler be capable of better personalizing servicesbased upon user situation, e.g., user location, user status, etc.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Methods, systems, and arrangements facilitate information interexchangebetween a telecommunications network and an information serviceprovider. For example, in accordance with certain embodiment(s), abusiness-to-business (B2B) engine includes one or more logic modules forinterfacing with the telecommunications network and with the informationservice provider. The B2B engine facilitates the reporting of, e.g.,realtime information from the telecommunications network to theinformation service provider. This realtime information may includesubscriber unit location that is proactively sent by the subscriber unitto the B2B engine for forwarding to the information service provider. Toavoid possibly congesting the telecommunications network, the B2B engineis empowered to monitor the number of proactively-transmitted locationmessages and to limit them if they exceed a defined threshold. Forexample, the B2B engine may monitor them on a location area level andcompare the total number of such location messages to an adjustablethreshold. If the total number exceeds the threshold, then the B2Bengine selects one or more subscriber units using any of a number ofcriteria to receive an order to lower the number of location messagesbeing transmitted from those subscriber units. In this manner, a finiteresource such as a control channel can be ensured to be available fortelecommunications services.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The disclosed invention will be described with reference to theaccompanying drawings, which show important examplary embodiments of theinvention and which are incorporated in the specification hereof byreference, wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates a conventional telecommunications system forproviding a variety of Internet-based content to a subscriber;

FIG. 2 illustrates a telecommunications system in accordance with theprinciples of the present invention, providing a business-to-businessengine interfacing with external content providers and providingrealtime subscriber information thereto;

FIG. 3 further illustrates the telecommunications system of FIG. 2,demonstrating the interaction between telecommunications operators andthe content providers by way of the business-to-business engine inaccordance with the present invention;

FIG. 4 illustrates a preferred embodiment of the present inventionillustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3, demonstrating the interaction betweenmobile telecommunications operators and content providers using thebusiness-to-business engine;

FIG. 5 illustrates exemplary interactions between thebusiness-to-business engine of the present invention and differentelements of a network;

FIG. 6 illustrates an architecture of a number of application modules ina preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 illustrates an alternate architecture for the application modulesfrom that shown in FIG. 6 in accordance with another embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 8 is a flow diagram illustrating a flow of signals employed in usersubscription initialization;

FIG. 9 illustrates a preferred interface between a portal and userequipment through the B2B engine of the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a flow diagram illustrating a number of signals employed ininitiating an “OFF” trigger pursuant to the teachings of the presentinvention;

FIG. 11 is another flow diagram illustrating a flow of signals for anevent occurring in a telecommunication system in accordance with theteachings of the present invention;

FIG. 12 is a flow diagram illustrating a user-on indication to the B2Bengine of the present invention;

FIG. 13 is a flow diagram illustrating a location area update to the B2Bengine of the present invention;

FIG. 14 illustrates an architecture in a preferred embodiment of thepresent invention, demonstrating a number of interactions between theB2B engine and several network nodes;

FIG. 15 illustrates an example of network node notification to the B2Bengine;

FIG. 16 illustrates the communications of realtime informationassociated with mobile subscriber from various network elements to theB2B engine in accordance with the teachings of the present invention;

FIG. 17 illustrates a number of the protocols used in connection withthe present invention, particularly between the B2B engine and severalnetwork nodes;

FIG. 18 illustrates an exemplary configuration and interworking of a B2Bengine with different network architectures;

FIG. 19 illustrates another exemplary inter-network diagram inaccordance with the present invention;

FIGS. 20A and 20B illustrate exemplary network aspects related tosubscriber location in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 21 illustrates an exemplary network situation with potentialchannel congestion that may be minimized or avoided in accordance withthe present invention; and

FIG. 22 illustrates an exemplary method in flowchart form for minimizingor avoiding network channel congestion in accordance with the presentinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENTLY PREFERRED EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

The numerous innovative teachings of the present application will bedescribed with particular reference to the presently preferred exemplaryembodiments. However, it should be understood that this class ofembodiments provides only a few examples of the many advantageous usesof the innovative teachings herein. In general, statements made in thespecification of the present application do not necessarily delimit anyof the various claimed inventions. Moreover, some statements may applyto some inventive features/embodiment(s) but not to others.

The present invention sets forth a system and methodology for providingpersonalized, customizable intelligent information and associatedservices to mobile subscribers based on the mobile subscribers' realtimeinformation, including but not limited to the mobile subscriber'scurrent activity, preferences, location, usage and behavior patternsinherent in realtime networks.

As noted hereinabove, FIG. 1 illustrates a conventionaltelecommunications system that supplies information to telecomsubscribers. In the prior art, the contents of the restaurant andweather information, 105 and 110, for example, are supplied from thecontent providers to the end users directly. The telecom operators 120,however, in this paradigm are only pipe providers passing theinformation to the end users, akin to many current ISPs. In particular,and as discussed in more detail hereinbelow, the telecom operators 120do not share any realtime information 130 about the user with thecontent providers and are only a means to pass information one-way fromthe content providers directly to the users who, of course, operate inrealtime. As an illustration, in order for a mobile subscriber toretrieve the weather information associated with the subscriber'scurrent location in a conventional system, although the serving mobiletelecommunication network already knows the approximate location of themobile subscriber, since the serving mobile telecommunications networkmerely act as a conduit for communicating such information, the mobilesubscriber nevertheless has to manually provide the location informationto the Internet content provider.

With reference now to FIG. 2, there is illustrated abusiness-to-business (B2B) engine 210 in accordance with a preferredembodiment of the present invention. The business-to-business engine 210includes a number of application modules 220 therein, as more fullyillustrated and described hereinbelow with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7and the accompanying text. In a preferred configuration, the B2B engine210 runs on network hardware, generally designated in FIG. 2 by thereference numeral 224, e.g., a Sparc processor, and uses an operatingsystem/middle ware 222, e.g., Solaris OS, which is stable and performsvarious functions described in more detail hereinbelow. It should, ofcourse, be understood that alternate hardware and software may beutilized in the implementation of the instant invention, as understoodby one skilled in the art. With further reference to FIG. 2, the B2Bengine 210 is connected to a telecommunication system 230 and to theInternet 250.

The telecommunication system 230 preferably includes a wireless serviceprovider or any service provider that services a number of subscriber oruser terminals, e.g., cellular phones, personal data assistants (PDAs)or any wireless or wireline communications device or equipment capableof receiving signals. In addition, the B2B engine 210 is coupled, via alink 248 to the Internet, generally designated by the reference numeral250, which includes content provider applications that supplyinformation to users pro-actively. The supplied information may be foundat and forwarded from a weather server 260, a financial server 262, anews server 264 and/or an ad server 266, via a respective link 252 tothe Internet 250, which provides the gateway for the respectiveservices.

An Internet portal for collecting and providing certain services basedon such collected information may also be connected to the Internet 250.Such a portal may further communicate with other associated servers 260,262, 264, 266, and communicate such collected information to a requestervia the Internet 250.

With reference now to FIG. 3, there is illustrated a preferredembodiment of the present invention, showing the alternate paradigm ofthe instant invention as compared to the conventional paradigm shown inFIG. 1. The B2B Engine 210 connected to a serving telecommunicationoperator 120 communicates certain realtime information associated with aparticular mobile subscriber to any one of the content providers, suchas restaurant information provider 105, weather information provider 110or service portal 115. Each of these content providers or portal canthen use the received realtime information associated with a particularmobile subscriber to provide a service customized to that particularsubscriber's realtime status or preference. As an illustration, arequest for nearby Italian restaurants will be answered and provided tothe requesting mobile subscriber without the mobile subscriber manuallytyping in the current location thereof. The B2B engine wouldautomatically receive the current location of the requesting mobilesubscriber and communicate this realtime information (locationinformation) to the content provider pro-actively.

As further described in FIG. 8, in order for a particular contentprovider to receive certain realtime information or event associatedwith a particular mobile subscriber, the content provider must subscribewith the B2B Engine. The content provider may need to provide a mobileidentification number associated with a particular mobile subscriber andsubscribe with the B2B engine to monitor and provide the contentprovider with certain realtime information associated with thatparticular mobile subscriber. As an example, the weather informationprovider may subscribe with the B2B engine to monitor a particularsubscriber's location and “on” information. As a result, whenever thatparticular mobile subscriber turns his mobile station on, such realtimeinformation will be provided to the weather information provider by theB2B engine. The weather information provider will, in turn,automatically provide the current weather information associated withthat particular location to the mobile subscriber. The mobile subscriberneed not manually request weather information nor does the user have tomanually enter his current location. The act of turning his phone “on”will automatically trigger those predefined services to be generated. Asfurther illustration, upon the arrival of a user in a city, weatherinformation of this city, headline news concerning this city, trafficsituation in that city, etc. is sent to the user. All of this is doneautomatically without the knowledge of the user, but according to hispreference, the network intelligently determines that the user needsthis information while in this location. Also, if a traveling userpasses by a crime area or a bad neighborhood, the B2B engine willintelligently know the user's location and inform the portal, which willsend information regarding the crime rate or the latest headline newsfor this current location. This will help people on the move, and ingeneral will help people no matter how often they travel. Moreover, in apreferred embodiment of the present invention, the network as a whole isinterconnected and intelligently exchanges information regarding theuser status to provide the best service to the end user. The proposedB2B engine provides this interconnectivity and intelligently connectsthe information providers or portals, to the mobile operators that theuser resides on. A non-realtime system, a portal, and a realtime system,a mobile operator interact and operate smoothly despite the differencesin their operating nature.

The content provider information, such as restaurant information 105,weather information 110 and portals 115, can channel or pipe therequested information or service through the telecom operator 120directly, as in FIG. 1, or alternatively, can be sent to the telecomoperator 120 through a B2B engine 210, such as engine 210 described inconnection with FIG. 2 and further hereinbelow. It should be understoodthat the B2B engine 210 of the present invention, preferably resides onthe telecommunications network and is interposed between the contentproviders and the telecom operators 120. Accordingly, the B2B engine 210is responsible for getting the aforementioned realtime information 130associated with the respective user, e.g., location and/or preferences,and processing this information. The B2B engine 210, upon receipt of therealtime status information, forwards the realtime data to the contentproviders, thereby permitting customization according to the respectiveuser's realtime situation and preferences.

With reference now to FIG. 4 of the Drawings, there is illustratedanother preferred embodiment of the present invention where the telecomoperators 120 are mobile operators, e.g., in accordance with the GlobalSubscriber Mobile (GSM) system, Personal Communication System (PCS) orother mobile telecommunication standard. The B2B engine 210 residentwithin the mobile network maintains the realtime information exchangebetween the mobile operators 120 and the respective content providers,e.g., the aforedescribed restaurant information 105, weather information110 and portals 115. The B2B engine 210 determines realtime informationabout the mobile subscribers in communication with the mobile operators'network, by communicating with the network and the respective users todetermine a variety of subscriber information: subscriber rules 242 forapplication and any requisite conditions, subscriber preferences 244,subscriber status 246, and any intelligence factor 248 necessary tosatisfy the needs of the mobile subscriber. This subscriber informationis gathered for each user and supplied to the content providers, whichprovide the information to the mobile subscriber. The restaurantinformation 105, weather information 110 and portals 115 are customizedaccording to the realtime status of the user, and provided from the B2Bengine 210 to the content providers in realtime, by the B2B engine 210regarding the realtime status, requirements, preferences, rules and/orlocation of the subscribed user.

A preferred embodiment of the present invention integrates a realtimesystem, e.g., the aforementioned telecom operator 120, and anon-realtime system, e.g., content providers, using thebusiness-to-business (B2B) engine 210 of the present invention. The B2Bengine 210, as described herein, communicates with the respectivetelecom operators 120 and the associated network elements to getrealtime information about their subscribers, processes the subscriberinformation and supplies the information to the content providers inaccordance with the certain subscribed events previously requested bythose content providers.

In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, there are aplurality of telecommunication operators 120, each having discretesubscribers associated therewith. Each telecom operator 120 in thisembodiment preferably acts independently and supplies realtimeinformation about the respective subscribers to the content providers.In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, each telecomoperator 120 is issued a unique identification number. The respectivecontent provider(s), according to the request made by an identifiabletelecom operator 120, then sends the requested information to the usersubscribed in that telecom operator 120 network.

With reference now to FIG. 5, there are illustrated exemplaryinteractions between the business-to-business (B2B) engine 210 of thepresent invention and different elements of the network. Realtimesystems 270, such as wireless communication systems, wire linecommunication systems and ISPs, interface with the B2B engine 210 toprovide realtime information about subscribers and end users to the B2Bengine 210. Content providers 272 are coupled to the B2B engine 210 toget realtime information from the B2B engine 210 and the behaviorinformation of subscribers.

The content providers 272 also provide information to an end user, e.g.,a wireless communication subscriber, a wire line subscriber or an ISPsubscriber and designated generally by reference numeral 274, throughthe B2B engine 210.

With further reference to FIG. 5, rather than communicating thesemonitored realtime events to external content providers, applicationmodules and services associated with the B2B engine can independentlygenerate and provide certain desired services to those monitored mobilesubscribers. Accordingly, a number of B2B developers 278 develop andupdate application modules in the B2B engine 210 to support new servicesand/or enhance existing services.

In an alternative embodiment of the present invention the B2B engine 210is connected to a portal or content aggregators to provide informationto the end user. The portals and the content aggregators gather theinformation from different content providers and supply the gatheredinformation to the end user through different means that will bediscussed in more detail hereinafter.

In particular, the user first subscribes to the portal or the contentaggregators. Upon the user's subscription, the portals pass thesubscription, as an event, to the B2B engine 210. The B2B engine 210receives the subscription event of the user and stores it in the B2Bengine memory 210A or database. It should be understood that thedatabase is preferably an internal database inside the B2B engine 210 oran external database that could be accessed by the B2B engine 210.

It should, of course, be understood to one of ordinary skill in the artthat inclusion of a B2B engine 210 into a telecommunications networkhaving various protocols of operation will entail creation of a varietyof databases, interfaces and portals necessary to facilitate the flowand interexchange of information. For example, a user's preferences maybe stored in a preferences database and trigger conditions or events(rules) operate to initiate a communication. Mobile users of theInternet will expect somewhat equivalent access to that of a fixedstation, as well as enhanced, personalized services based upon mobility.

As discussed, for mobile operators, there is the opportunity to becomemore than a mere pipe provider by exploiting the relationship with thesubscribers (monthly bills, personal information) and take advantage ofthe wireless Internet to generate new revenue. Content providers, inturn, face various challenges to make their content available andpersonal to mobile Internet subscribers. Indeed, the personalization ofInternet services by telecommunications operators coincides with thetrend of providing increasingly personalized services on the Internet,particularly, with the advent of vertical portals and personalized userprofiles.

As described above in connection with FIGS. 2-5 and set forth in moredetail hereinbelow, the system and methodology of the present inventionis an intelligent engine that leverages subscriber activity,preferences, location, usage and behavior patterns inherent within amobile network to provide personalized customizable mobile Internetservices in realtime. In particular, the present invention allowscontent providers to build personalized content based upon mobility inthe mobile network, allows mobile subscribers to receive personalizedcontent based upon mobility and allows mobile operators to leverage themobility information in the mobile telecom network to move up the valuechain. Furthermore, the present invention provides a platform forservice providers to build new Internet services based upon the realtimeinformation associated with mobile subscribers within a mobiletelecommunications network.

As further discussed below in connection with the portals and interfacesof the present invention, a variety of new functions are provided increating the realtime mobile Internet environment. In particular, apersonal preferences user interface and database provide a mechanism forboth selecting personal preferences and storing those preferences of anInternet subscriber in a database managed by the telecommunicationsoperator. The requisite realtime mobility information is provided viainterfaces with network nodes and/or network elements in thetelecommunications system. A rules-based environment allows wirelessInternet subscribers to customize or develop new services based uponrealtime events. Exemplary rules-based customizable services include:

Upon mobile powering up,

access information from finance.yahoo.com

deliver via short message service to mobile

In this example, the wireless Internet subscriber uses the powering upof their own mobile as a realtime event to invoke a service, andcustomizes that service to deliver news from a particular website in aparticular format. Another exemplary service includes:

Upon detection of arrival in new town,

reroute calls to new number

deliver request for hotel room and car rental to

travel coordinator

await receipt of confirmation

acknowledge confirmation

alert to user

In this example, the wireless Internet subscriber uses the time ofarrival, e.g., via plane, to initiate a variety of actions to facilitatecoordination of travel needs. If time zone changes occur, an alert maybe generated confirming the subscriber of the time change.

As further described above, all those desired events are subscribed withthe B2B Engine by content providers. The B2B Engine thereaftercommunicates with the serving mobile telecommunications network anddetermines that a particular event has occurred for a mobile subscriberand communicates such triggering event with the subscribed contentprovider to enable the content provider to automatically effectuate allthose services.

The numerous features of a Business-to-Business (B2B) engine isdiscussed hereabove. To achieve the functionalities mentioned and toallow for its interconnection with the network, certain features andcomponents should be available in the B2B engine. With reference now toFIG. 6, there are illustrated a variety of business-to-business (B2B)engine 210 application modules 220 in a preferred embodiment of thepresent invention. As shown, the B2B engine application module 220includes a variety of discrete modules, each having an important role inthe system. In particular, the B2B application modules 220 include anInterface module (IM) 280, a Data Collection Module (DCM) 282, aBehavior Analysis Module (BAM) 284, a Service Development Environment(SDE) 286, a Realtime Delivery Module (RDM) 288, a Rules DevelopmentEnvironment (RDE) 290, a Business Data/End User Subscription Module(BDSM) 292, a Service Execution Module (SEM) 294, a Performance andCharging Module (PACM) 296 and an Operation and Maintenance Module(OAMM) 298.

The aforementioned Interface Module (IM) 280 is responsible forinterfacing the application modules 282-296 with the content providersand the telecommunication systems. The IM 280 interfaces with severalexternal components, such as different telecommunication systems andISPs. The IM 280 also provides an interface with the content providers.One of the primary functions of the IM 280 is to link externalcomponents in the network to the application modules in the B2B engine210. In a preferred embodiment, the IM 280 internally interfaces withthe Data Collection Module (DCM) 282 and the Realtime Delivery Module(RDM) 288. It should, of course, be understood that the IM 280 alsocould be interfaced with other internal modules, as well as externalcomponents of the network, depending on the system requirements.

With further reference to FIG. 6, the Data Collection module (DCM) 282is responsible for retrieving and storing realtime data fromtelecommunication systems and ISPs. The DCM 282 internally interfaceswith the Business Data Subscription Module (BDSM) 292 to find out aboutdata subscriptions from the content providers. The DCM 282 alsointerfaces with the Behavior Analysis Module (BAM) 284 and with theRealtime Delivery Module (RDM) 288 to deliver realtime information tothe content providers.

The Behavior Analysis Module (BAM) 284 is preferably a set of artificialintelligence programs which check the subscription information from theBDSM 292 and perform the analysis on the realtime data. Preferably, theBAM 284 is coupled to the RDM 288 to deliver the results to the contentproviders. In addition to being interfaced to the BDSM 292 and the RDM288, the BAM 284 is interfaced to the Data Collection Module (DCM) 282.

The Rules Development Environment (RDE) 290 allows the development ofrules used for the development of services. The RDE 290 stores the rulesin a Rule Repository (Rrep). The rules could be constantly updated tosuite new services being adopted and varied according to the preferencesof various components in the system. The Service Development Environment(SDE) 286 allows telecom operators or end users to develop new sets ofservices based on a set of rules. The SDE 286 is internally interfacedwith the Rule Repository to develop services and with the ServiceExecution Module (SEM) 294. The Service Execution Module (SEM) 294executes the service used, and is internally interfaced with the SDE 286and the BDSM 292.

The Business Data/End User Subscription Module (BDSM) 292 allows thecontent providers to subscribe to realtime and behavioral data, and alsoallows end users to subscribe to the services. To do that, the BDSM 292is internally interfaced with the RDM 288. The Performance and ChargingModule (PACM) 296 is responsible for collecting statistics, keepingtrack of the number of times realtime data was requested by the contentproviders and the number of subscribers accessing their services. ThePACM 296 also keeps track of other statistical data that could behelpful to fully utilize the network and its performance. The PACM 296also produces charging for post processing.

Lastly, the Operation and Maintenance Module (OAMM) 298 is responsiblefor managing and configuring the B2B engine 210. The OAMM 298 is capableof configuring the content providers, maintaining the B2B engine,handling faults in the system, and managing the security issues in thesystem, as well as other operational and maintenance functionalities.

It should be understood that the B2B engine application modules 220illustrated in connection with FIG. 6 and discussed hereinabove arepreferably treated as being independent, despite the fact that theycould be joined together in one module or at least several could bejoined together. The discrete modules preferably have a modular designfor the applications, and are preferably Java-based. Alternatively,other programming languages that are suited for the above-mentionedcharacteristics may be employed, e.g., C++, Java Servlets, Java Beans,JSP, and others. As discussed, an important aspect of the presentinvention is having near Realtime performance. In addition to copingwith realtime environments, the system is designed to reduce fault andhas a fault tolerance system.

Another preferred embodiment of the B2B engine, further illustrating themodularity and the implementation using different modular architecture,is shown in FIG. 7. The B2B engine in this embodiment, designated by thereference numeral 310, also includes an interface module 315 and anoperation and maintenance module 320 as described above. However, thisembodiment preferably includes an intelligence module (INM) 325, anevent reception and processing module (ERPM) 330, a charging module (CM)335, a subscription database (SD) 340, a validation module (VM) 345, adata collection module (DCM) 350 and an event forwarding module (EFM)355.

Upon reception of a subscription event from a portal, by the B2B engineInterface Module (IM) 315, the IM 315 interfaces with the ValidationModule (VM) 345 to validate this subscription event. The VM 345interfaces with the data collection module (DCM) 350, which allows thesubmission of the subscriber identity and allows the storage of theevents in a subscription database (SD). The SD must be secure andpreferably scalable to allow expansion to the number of subscribers. TheDCM 350 also is responsible for informing the portal that the subscribeduser has been successfully registered in the B2B engine 310 database.Events received from the network nodes indicating the status of themobile subscriber, arrive at the Interface Module and processed at theEvent Reception and Processing Module (ERPM) 330. These events arevalidated using the Validation Module (VM) 345, by accessing thesubscribed user preference in the SD, which is done to ensure that theuser is a registered B2B engine 310 subscriber.

After validating the user profile, the event is packed and anotification is sent to the portal, using the Event Forwarding Module(EFM) 355, via a highly secure HTTP notification message. After thisnotification has been sent to the portal regarding the subscribed userstatus, the Charging Module (CM) 335 creates a charging record for theportal concerning the information sent.

The modules, as mentioned above with respect to FIGS. 6 and 7, could bearranged in a variety of configurations to provide the functions neededby the system. However, looking at the B2B engine 210/310 from adifferent perspective, different architecture for the modules could beimplemented.

For more understanding of the interaction of the portal with the B2Bengine, reference is now made to FIG. 8, which further illustrates thetransmission of a subscription event of a user from a portal. FIG. 8represents a timing diagram, generally designated by the referencenumeral 360, for the subscription event and the interaction of a portal362 with a B2B engine 364 regarding this subscription. The user firstsubscribes to the portal service using any of several mechanisms, e.g.,through the web site of the portal 362, www.yahoo.com, etc., generallydesignated by reference numeral 366. The user, however, needs to providevarious person and preference information to the portal 362. Thisinformation includes the user identification number (MSISDN), mobileoperator and various preferences associated with the desired content orevents to be monitored. The portal 362 stores 368 all of the supplieduser information in a database therein. Upon storing 368 theinformation, the portal 362 sends an event notification 370 informingthe appropriate B2B engine 364 in charge of the mobile operator of thesubscribed user. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, theB2B engine 364 is in charge of a mobile operator or in some cases aplurality of mobile operators. The notification event 370 sent to theB2B engine 364 preferably includes a mobile station identificationnumber (MSISDN) of the user, the subscription details, events, andpreferences of the user and other related information. This notificationevent is preferably sent using a secured HTTP protocol.

The B2B engine 364 receives the event notification 370 and processes theinformation therein. This internal validation is done in a preferredembodiment using a layered architecture, such as also discussed inconnection with FIGS. 6 and 7. With reference again to FIG. 8, uponreceipt of the event notification 370, a first layer or class, generallydesignated by the reference numeral 372, requests establishment of a newconnection (step 374). A second layer or class 766 inserts thissubscription event (step 378) in a third layer or class 380 whichvalidates the user identification number (MSISDN) (step 382) and stores(step 384) the subscription information in a database. Upon thecompletion of validation step 384, an acknowledgment is sent (step 386)to the portal 362 regarding the subscription event notification 370,preferably using an HTTP protocol. The B2B engine thereafter monitorsthe requested realtime information associated with that particularmobile subscriber.

The B2B engine, as described hereinabove, could operate in a number ofways. In one embodiment of the present invention, the B2B engine pollsthe relevant network nodes to request updated information. In anotherembodiment, the network nodes are programmed to inform the B2B engine ofchanges in status of the user. Yet another embodiment allows the mobilestation to report status information to the B2B engine, this is done bytriggering an application client program in the mobile station. However,these preferred embodiments could function concurrently. As an example,the B2B engine could poll some network nodes while other network nodesare reporting their status to the B2B engine. Also, the mobile stationcould report its status to the B2B engine and this same status reportcould be supplied also by a network node. The B2B engine, however,intelligently determines that the information sent is related,redundant, and combines both pieces of information to perform advancedfunctions based on a better understanding of the user status.

With the above discussion of the position of the B2B engine within atelecommunications network and various modules in mind, attention shouldnow be directed to FIG. 9, which illustrates exemplary interworkings ofa B2B engine 410 in a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Asillustrated, the B2B engine 410 is connected to a front-end portal 420,to a mobile station 430 (via wireless connection) and an Operation andMaintenance (O&M) 415 Management system. The O&M system 415 will providean operator or the owner of the product the capabilities to operate andmaintain the B2B engine. All the fault and alarm handling can becontrolled and monitored through this O&M system 415. Also, a remoteadministration system will be accessible, as shown herein or a moduleinside the B2B engine as described earlier with reference to FIG. 6. Asshown in the figure, the mobile station 430 may include a WirelessApplication Protocol (WAP) toolkit 432 and/or a SubscriberIdentification Module (SIM) development toolkit 434 therein.

The WAP toolkit 432 is used to develop and support WAP applications,which, as is understood in the art, gives a wireless user access to thecontents and services of the Internet. The WAP toolkit 432 preferablyresides in the mobile station 430, which preferably is able to supportthe WAP protocols.

The SIM toolkit 434, which resides in the mobile station 430 is used forvalue-added services and e-commerce using the mobile station, enablingtransactions over the Internet. For example, using a SIM toolkit-enabledmobile station, a user may be able to check their bank account, paybills, and all other services achieved by today's wire line Internetaccess. The SIM toolkit 434 is preferably programmed into a SIM card,designated generally in FIG. 9 by the reference numeral 436, andadditionally enables an interface between the network and the end user.A preferred embodiment of the Mobile Equipment (ME)/Subscriber InterfaceModule (SIM) interaction with the B2B engine will be describedhereinafter with reference to FIGS. 10-13. As noted, theBusiness-to-Business engine 410 is also connected to the front-endportal 420, or a number of portals, which provide information to the enduser. It should be understood to those skilled in the art that thisinformation is tailored according to respective user preferences and iscollected from various content providers. It should also be understoodthat the portal 420 in a preferred embodiment of the present inventioncould be a dummy portal 422 or one designed to better exploit theInternet connections, e.g., a so-called WISE portal 424, as isunderstood by one of ordinary skills in the art.

With reference to FIG. 10, there is illustrated an example of an “OFF”Trigger for a wireless phone, the steps of which are generallydesignated by the reference numeral 450. A Mobile Station (MS),generally designated by the reference numeral 452, includes a SubscriberIdentification Module (SIM) toolkit 454 located therein. The SIM toolkit454 transmits, with a determined intervals, short message service (SMS)messages, generally designated in the figure by the reference numeral456, containing the subscriber status and the mobile station 452 ISDNnumber (MSISDN). The SIM toolkit 454 performs this action to keep anassociated B2B engine 458 informed of the realtime information andlocation of the MS 452. Receipt of this message initiates a timer 460for the B2B engine 458. If the timer 474 does not expire and anothermessage is received before expiration, within the predetermined timeinterval, the timer is reset. If, however, the timer 472 expires in theB2B engine 458, meaning that the B2B engine 458 did not receive anymessage from the user in a determined amount of time, the B2B engine 458will assume that the mobile station 452 has been turned off, e.g.,sometime after transmission of SMS message 462 to the B2B engine 458.This, as an example, could be an indication that the user is busy orasleep and that no new contents should be sent by the portal to thesubscribed user. After the B2B engine 458 fails to receive a furthermessage after SMS message 462 in the timer period, B2B engine 458validates and processes 464 this event, and forwards an eventnotification 466, containing the MSISDN of that user and an indicationof the subscribed OFF event, to a portal 468 associated with this event.The portal 468 then acknowledges 470 the reception of the notification.

With reference now to FIG. 11, there is illustrated a timing diagram ofa usual operation of the system and methodology, in a preferredembodiment of the present invention, the steps of which are generallydesignated by the reference numeral 500. As with the embodimentdescribed in connection with FIG. 12, a subscribed end user entersinformation and preferences (step 504) at a portal 502, particularly,into a portal database. After the preferences of the end user are stored504 in the portal database and, preferably, before an event occurs, aSIM application is initialized for realtime services and over the airactivation for a subscribed user, and a plurality of SIM data isdownloaded (step 506) from the portal database to a Short MessageSwitching Center (SMSC) 508, e.g., over an air interface. The SIM datais then sent peer-to-peer (step 510) to Mobile Equipment (ME) 512 thatincludes a SIM card therein, generally designated by the referencenumeral 514.

Once an event occurs regarding any change in the user preferences,location, etc., a SIM toolkit, generally designated by the referencenumeral 516, which resides in the mobile equipment 512, sends an SMSmessage 518 informing a B2B engine 520 of the subscribed user's statusand providing the user's MSISDN number. Upon arrival at the B2B engine520, particularly at a socket listener 522 thereof, the aforementionedSMS message 518 is unpacked (step 524) in the B2B engine 520 by thesocket listener 522, which then creates a new event (step 526) based onthe information provided in the SMS message 518. A second layer orclass, generally designed by the reference numeral 528 in the B2B engine520, upon receipt of the new event information 526, then establishes anew connection 830 and validates 532 the event subscribed 526 bycomparing the user identity and preferences with what is stored in a B2Bdatabase, generally designated by the reference numeral 534. Uponreceipt of the new connection and validation information, a third layeror class, generally designated in the figure by the reference numeral536, processes the event (step 538) and optionally stores the modifiedinformation in the B2B database 534. The processed event 538 informationis forwarded by the third class 536 to a fourth class 540. An eventnotification message 542 is sent to the portal 502 by the fourth layer540 in the B2B engine 520, informing the portal 502 that an event wasreceived and providing the portal 802 with the user's MSISDN.

The portal 502, upon receipt of the event notification message 542 thensends an acknowledge message 544 to the B2B engine 520, acknowledgingthe reception of the event notification 542 , preferably using an HTTPprotocol. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, charging546 occurs for all information provided, and charging 546 for therealtime event information provided to the portal 502 will occur afterthe acknowledgment message 544. The charging record will be created inthe B2B Engine which will log all the relevant information related tothe event. As illustrated, information is preferably delivered by theportal 502 to the end user at the ME 512 using an SMS message. Itshould, of course, be understood that the contents could alternativelybe sent using a Wireless Application protocol (WAP), using a WAP over anSMS message or other such protocols.

As discussed above and particularly in connection with FIGS. 12 and 13the subscribed user employs Mobile Equipment (ME) 512, sometimesreferred to as a mobile station, which includes a SIM card 514, on whicha SIM application is programmed and running. In a preferred embodimentof the present invention, a B2B engine 520 client application resides onthe Subscriber Identification Module (SIM) and is responsible forreporting realtime events occurring within the mobile equipment(ME)/Network entity to the B2B engine 820 server node. The clientapplication uses triggers from the SIM card 514 to invoke a SIM toolkitoperation 516 to send Short Messages to the B2B engine server 520 withinformation on the realtime events happening in the ME-Network. In thisembodiment, the short message sent is addressed to the B2B engine andthe mobile telecommunication operator acts as conduit to thisinformation sent.

The SIM Application toolkit 516 provides mechanisms which allowapplications, existing in the SIM 514, to interact and operate with theMobile Equipment (ME) 512 download the ME profile to the SIM 514,download data (step 506) to the SIM 514, transfer a user's menuselection to the SIM 514, call control by the SIM 514, MO Short Messagecontrol by the SIM 514 and security. The proactive SIM 514 could displaytext, play a tone, send a short message, set up a call, etc., as isunderstood in the art.

The interaction between the SIM 514 and the ME 512 is best shown withreference to the following examples described in connection with FIGS.12 and 13, which illustrate a preferred embodiment of the SIM/mobileentity reporting events to the B2B engine for realtime services. Uponchange of the user status or preferences, the B2B engine is updated ofsuch a change by the mobile Equipment (ME). In these figures, theexemplary events that are reported to the B2B engine server are theON/OFF, Cell Global Identity (CGI) and the location area (LA) change.

With reference now to FIG. 12 there is illustrated, in detail, a timingdiagram, generally designated in the figure by the reference numeral550, of a user “ON” indication to a B2B engine 552. Initially, a givenMobile Equipment (ME) 554 first initializes an associated SIM 556. Thisinitialization (step 558) is done by activating and testing the SIMdevice 556 to ascertain what functions are supported. At present, thisSIM 856 initialization is preferably performed pursuant to a GSM 11.11standard, although it is understood that alternative initializationprotocols may be alternatively used. The identification of a proactiveSIM 556 is done at this stage by having the proactive SIM serviceactivated in a SIM service table (step 560). However, if the ME 554 doesnot support the proactive SIM feature, the proactive SIM 556 shall notsend proactive SIM-related commands to the ME, and vice versa. The ME554 shall then send a STATUS command (step 562) periodically to theproactive SIM 556 during idle mode, as well as during a call, therebyenabling the proactive SIM 556 to respond with a command since the ME554 always initiates commands to the SIM 556.

After a power-on by the ME 554, the first message sent is the STATUSmessage (step 564), which is used to trigger (step 564) the appropriateB2B engine 552 client application residing on the SIM card. The clientapplication reads appropriate files on the SIM 556 and packs therelevant information into a short message and requests the SIM to sendit onwards to the ME (step 570). The SIM 856 sends a message (step 566)informing the ME 554 that further information is available. The ME 554then responds using a FETCH command (step 568) to get the informationfrom the SIM 556. The SIM 556, upon receipt of the aforementioned FETCHcommand 568, sends the composed short message from the clientapplication to the ME 554 (step 570A) in order for the information to besent to the B2B engine. Following that, the ME 554 sends the shortmessage (step 572) to the B2B engine, informing that the MS 554 has beenturned on. The B2B engine 552 receives this message and interprets itfurther to provide enhanced services. The ME 554 then responds to theSIM 556 informing that the message regarding the event has been sent(step 574). The SIM 556, in turn, acknowledges the response and sends anormal ending message (step 576). The mobile station is now turned onand all the elements, such as the ME 554, the SIM 556 and the clientapplications 552 are aware of that occurrence. As discussed earlier, theME 854 sends a periodical status command (step 578) to the SIM 856,which after the ME 554 is turned on, results in a trigger (step 580) tothe client application 552 on the SIM card 552, and from which aperiodical SMS message (step 578) could be sent.

With reference now to FIG. 13, there is illustrated a timing diagram ofa location area change indication of the ME 554 to the B2B engine 552,in another presently preferred embodiment of the present invention. Asillustrated, SIM 556 initialization and proactive SIM determination(Steps 558 and 560) are first performed, again, preferably, pursuant toa GSM 11.11 protocol. As is understood in the art, the Mobile Equipment554 is requested by the client application and the SIM to monitor anylocation change and, upon any such change, the ME 554 informs the B2Bengine 552 of this change. The location information as discussed abovemay be GPS information, cell global identity information, or routingarea information associated with a mobile subscriber. Additionally, theMobile Equipment 554 may also communicate using other packet basedprotocols, such as USSD messages or WAP.

As discussed, when a change in location happens, appropriate processesin the ME 554 are invoked. The ME forwards a set location update statusmessage (step 586) to the SIM 856, and then informs the clientapplication residing in the SIM, via an envelope command (step 588),that the location area update has occurred. The client application istriggered 588A and takes this data from the envelope command, reads andadds appropriate data from the SIM 556 and packs a short message. Thispacked short message is sent (step 590) by the client application to theSIM 556, as indicated in FIG. 13, in step 590A the SIM informs the ME ofthe request to send a short message. With the FETCH command 592 the MEasks the SIM to provide the data for the short message which it does in593. The ME transmits the packed short message to the B2B engine (step594) which uses the data to provide enhanced services. The ME 554 thenas usual informs the SIM 556 that the short message has been sent (step596) and the SIM 556 returns a normal ending message (step 598).

The updated information is sent to the B2B engine by the mobile stationto update its status and preferences in the B2B engine, as describedhereinabove. However, in another preferred embodiment of the presentinvention, the network nodes self monitor any desired subscriber eventsupdate and automatically provide the data to the B2B engine on arealtime basis.

With reference now to FIG. 14, the B2B engine 210, in addition to beingconnected to a portal 640 or to content aggregators, e.g., using aTransmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) or other packetbased communications protocol, is also connected to various other nodesin the network, generally designated in FIG. 14 by the reference numeral600. It should be understood, as described with reference to a preferredembodiment of the present invention, that these nodes could be adaptedto gather realtime information about the subscribed user. This could beachieved by programming the network nodes so that they could monitorrealtime subscriber events and activities and provide realtimeinformation to the B2B engine regarding the subscriber events received.The network elements can monitor and forward all subscriber events andactivities for all subscribers that are being served within that networkarea, or alternatively, the network elements can monitor and forwardsubscriber events and activities for those subscribers that havesubscribed with the B2B engine. The B2B engine 210 interfaces withnetwork nodes in the network 600 to receive information about thesubscribed events from these nodes. The Mobile Switching Center(MSC)/Visitor Location Register (VLR) 615 sends mobility information,VLR record and the call control of related events to a subscriber, e.g.,using Message TCP/IP or like protocols. The sending of the realtimeinformation is triggered upon receiving a location update orregistration signal from the subscribed user.

Also, handover triggers and radio-related trigger events from a RadioNetwork Subsystem (RNS) 620 for system 600 is sent to the B2B engine. Asis understood to one skilled in the art, a Serving Generalized PacketRadio System (GPRS) Service Node (SGSN) 625 provides mobility and callcontrol-related information to the B2B engine 210, e.g., as related topacket domain networks, such as a generalized packet radio system(GPRS).

A Mobile Positioning Center (MPC) 630 provides the B2B engine 210 withinformation about the location of the mobile subscriber within thetelecommunications network. It should be understood to one skilled inthe art that the MPC 630 could be provided by a global positioningservice (GPS) or any other means for locating a mobile subscriberstation using, for example, TCP/IP protocols to forward the positioninginformation. A central service control function (CSCF) 635 unit providesto the B2B engine 210 a translation of the address number of thesubscriber to an Internet protocol (IP) address and also could providecontrol related events/information using, for example, Message andTCP/IP protocols.

As also understood by one skilled in the telecommunications art, uponswitching on a mobile station (MS), the serving MSC/VLR (MobileSwitching Center/Visitor Location Register) registers the MS andauthorize the MS by communicating with the Home Location Register (HLR)associated with that MS. The HLR then informs the B2B engine, upon thisregistration and authorization, to forward the preferred information tothe mobile station, as shown in a preferred embodiment describedhereinafter.

The network nodes are intelligently programmed to recognize anyinformation related to the subscribed user and upon the triggering of anevent, sends the realtime information to the B2B engine informing it ofthe update to the end user status. This information is stored in the B2Bengine database. The B2B engine 210 processes the information/eventssent by the nodes and forwards this formatted information to the portal640. Upon providing the information/events to the portal 340 by the B2Bengine 210, the portal 640 is billed for this realtime information, forexample, by a Billing Gateway (BGW) 645. The BGW 645 providesinformation about when and how much to bill the portals for the realtimeinformation provided. This is done by logging relevant information intocharging records for each user requested action. The billing could bedone internally in the B2B engine using a charging module, as shown inFIG. 7, or could be an external application connected to the B2B enginesuch as a BGW, as shown in FIG. 14. Also, the BGW could be in charge ofthe billing in the mobile operator for each user or provide information,for example, on the remaining balance for subscribers accessing thenetwork or the balance of the subscribers usage. The BGW functionalitiesare numerous and flexible depending on the services and plan for eachsubscribed user.

In the preferred embodiment described hereinabove, the network nodespreferably contain a client application (CL)/monitoring agent (MA)programmed in each of the network nodes wishing to report events to theB2B engine. These network nodes monitor certain triggers related to theuser and reports them to the B2B engine. Loading of a client applicationprogram in certain network nodes such as the HLR and/or the MSC/VLRcould be used to monitor certain enabled triggers related tosubscriber's behavior, status, mobility parameters, etc. An example ofthe network nodes providing the information to the B2B engine upon anychange to a user status or preferences is provided hereinbelow. Upon anyupdate to the user status or any change regarding the user in adatabase, the HLR client application is triggered and sends an update tothe B2B engine informing the engine of such a change. This clientapplication in the HLR is adapted to recognize any change andautomatically report this change to the B2B engine. All network nodesare also programmed to recognize any event and notify the B2B engine ofthis event, using the triggering mechanism of the client application.The MSC/VLR, for instance, tracks the mobility of the user and upon adetected change, for example the user location is changed, the MSC/VLRclient application is triggered and informs the B2B engine of thischange. Moreover, the MSC could work together with the MPC to pin-pointthe user location and send the information to the B2B engine. Also, theMSC/VLR client application is programmed to interact with the RNS toinform the B2B engine of any handover or radio triggers occurringrelated to the user. The RNS also contains a client application as inall involved network nodes in the update process.

FIG. 15 illustrates another example of the notification, by the networknode, of any change in the subscriber status and location. The VLR 652,upon any change to the subscriber status and location, will inform theHLR 654 using standard existing protocols, e.g. MAP 658, of such achange. The determination of the status change is performed using aMonitoring Agent (MA)656 inside both the VLR 652 and the HLR 654. TheHLR 654 in turn will interact with the B2B engine 660, which in thissituation is acting as a VLR 664. The B2B engine 660, in this case,being a GSM Service Control Function (gsmSCF) 662 node gets thesubscriber status and location information from the HLR 654 and storesit in a database. The B2B engine then performs the necessary operationson this information and acts accordingly. In general, once the clientapplication catches a trigger event in the network nodes (i.e. HLR,MSC/VLR, etc.) representing any change to the subscriber status, theclient application in the network nodes informs the B2B engine.

With further reference to FIG. 14, the B2B engine 210, as describedhereinabove could receive information/events regarding the subscribeduser from the network nodes without requesting this information.However, in another preferred embodiment of the present invention andfurther referring to FIG. 14, these network nodes are requested togather realtime information about the subscribed user. When thesubscription event is stored in the B2B engine 210 database, a HomeLocation Register (HLR) 610 is polled to determine the registrationinformation of the mobile subscriber, e.g., using Mobile ApplicationPart (MAP), TCP/IP or like protocols.

The B2B engine 210 interfaces with communication nodes in the network600 to request information about the subscribed events from these nodes.The B2B engine 210 polls a Mobile Switching Center (MSC)/VisitorLocation Register (VLR) 615 to request the mobility information, VLRrecord and the call control of related events to a subscriber, e.g.,using Message TCP/IP or like protocols.

The B2B engine 210 requests handover trigger and radio-related triggerevents from a Radio Network Subsystem (RNS) 320 for system 600. A MobilePositioning Center (MPC) 330 could be polled to provide the B2B engine210 with information about the location of the mobile subscriber withinthe telecommunications network. It should be understood to one skilledin the art that the MPC 630 could be any other means for locating amobile subscriber station, as described hereinabove. A central servicecontrol function (CSCF) 635 unit could be also polled to provide to theB2B engine 210 a translation of the address number of the subscriber toan Internet protocol (IP) address, and also could provide controlrelated events/information using, for example, Message and TCP/IPprotocols.

The B2B engine 210 provides intelligence in knowing which of theaforementioned elements or nodes to poll to gather the necessaryinformation for provision to a portal 640 using, for example, TCP/IPprotocols. The information may be selectively requested according to theneeds of the B2B engine in determining the status of atelecommunications device. The B2B engine 210 processes theinformation/events sent by the nodes and sends the gathered informationto the portal 640. Upon providing the information/events to the portal640 by the B2B engine 210, the portal 640 is billed for this realtimeinformation, as described hereinabove with reference to the previousembodiment.

As an example, when the B2B Engine requires certain information such assubscriber's status from the HLR, a message is sent to the HLRrequesting the information. The HLR will inturn respond with theresponse message informing the B2B engine of the current subscriberstatus. This same requesting mechanism could be used with the othernetwork nodes. A message could be sent by the B2B engine to any networknode requesting information about the subscriber. Upon reception of sucha message the network node gets the information and sends it to the B2Bengine. The B2B engine could act as a GSM Service Control Function(gsmSCF) node and interrogates the HLR at regular or periodic intervalsto get the status and the location information of a subscriber.

The network environment, within which the B2B engine 210 operates, isfully described hereinabove. In general, there are numerousimplementations of the service provided by the business-to-businessengine. With reference now to FIG. 16, however, there is illustrated analternative operation of the B2B engine 210 of the present invention. Inthis alternate configuration, the B2B engine 210 receives realtimeevents from a mobile subscriber 660, such as the subscriber status,location area and other events, as described with reference to FIGS.9-13, using as an example Short Message Service (SMS) messages. The B2Bengine 210 gets this information, in addition to other information, bypolling different nodes in the network, as described hereinabove withreference to a preferred embodiment. The network nodes however, asdescribed in another preferred embodiment described hereinabove, sendthe updated status information of the user to the B2B engine wheneverany change occurs regarding the subscriber. The B2B engine 210 thenparses the events based on the subscribed user preferences and processesthe information/event gathered.

These processed events are then sent to the portal/contentaggregators/content provider 640, for example, using an HTTP protocol.The portal 640 then personalizes the contents according to the eventinformation provided by the B2B engine 210. The portal converts thecontents, for example, to a wireless markup language (WML) used toprovide content to narrowband devices, such as mobile stations, PDAs,etc. The WML containing the personalized content is delivered via awireless application protocol gateway (WAPGW) to the subscribed user viathe mobile phone. However, the portal can also deliver the personalizedcontent using an SMS message or any other proprietary wireless dataprotocol. As is illustrated in FIG. 16, the contents could be sent tothe mobile station through a Wireless Application Protocol gateway(WAPGW). The WAPGW is a network node providing direct connection betweenthe mobile network and the dedicated Internet application services, suchas the portals. There are numerous methods that could be used forsending the contents to the subscriber. For example, the contents couldbe sent through the Short Message Service Center (SMSC) using a Shortmessage (SMS) or a WAP sent over an SMS message. Moreover, the contentssent to the mobile station could be an Unstructured SupplementaryService Data (USSD). This could be done using a USSD Gateway thatretrieves the information from the portals and sends it to the SMSC fordelivery as a short message. Other transport bearers such as GPRS couldbe used to send content from the portals to the mobile station.Advancements toward fast speed access systems in today's mobiletechnology lead the way to third generation (3G) wireless systems. Thedata packet transport systems such as the Generalized Packet RadioService (GPRS) and the Evolved Data for GSM Evolution (EDGE) providefast connections that will allow easy and quick content delivery to themobile stations. Taking these transport bearers in mind, all thecommunication between the mobile stations, the B2B engine, and theInternet portals could be performed using these transport bearersdiscussed herein. For example, instead of sending an SMS message by amobile station through a SMSC, as described hereinabove, a mobilestation could communicate with the B2B engine using a GPRS network bysending data packets utilizing the high speed access.

With reference to FIG. 17, the B2B engine 210, in addition to beingconnected to a portal 640 or to content aggregators, e.g., using aTransmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP), is alsoconnected to various other nodes in the network. In general, it shouldbe understood that these network nodes are typically used to gatherrealtime information about the subscribed user. The nodes in the networkcommunicate with each other using standard protocols. These protocolsare used to ease the means of communication between network nodes and tobe compatible with the requisite standards. With further reference toFIG. 17, there is illustrated a preferred embodiment of the protocolsused in the communication between the network nodes and theaforementioned B2B engine 210. It should be understood that the B2Bengine 210 is preferably interfaced with all of the nodes in the networksupplying event information, e.g., using a standard IEEE 802.3connection.

The communication between the nodes are performed, as in othercommunication standards, using a layered structure. For example, all ofthe protocols employed utilize the Transmission ControlProtocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) protocol in their lower layers.However, in the upper layer each node uses a different protocol. Forexample, the B2B engine 210 communicates with the portal 640 using aHyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP) commonly used in Internetcommunication. The HLR 610 uses a MAP protocol. The Mobile PositioningCenter (MPC) 630 preferably uses a MPC protocol. A Short MessagingService Center (SMSC) 650 preferably uses a Short Message Peer-to-Peer(SMPP) protocol. The particular protocols used are well known in the artand provide a means of interconnection between the different nodes inthe network. However, it should be understood that a variety of otherprotocols could be used to support internodal communications.

Referring now to FIG. 18, which illustrates the B2B engine interfacingwith different network architectures. The B2B engine interfaces with a2.5 G wireless telecommunications system 710 as shown in this figure andin previous FIG. 14. However, the B2B engine could be interfaced withother systems such as a second generation (2G) wirelesstelecommunications operator system 730. It also can be interconnectedwith a 3G wireless telecommunications system 750 which is currentlyunder development. Although, the system architectures that are connectedto the B2B engine are different, the same procedure could be used witheach network node in the system, as was described hereinabove. Forinstance, the B2B engine could poll each of the network nodes in the 3Gwireless telecommunications system 750, or the network nodes couldreport any event to the B2B engine 210 regarding any update to thesubscriber status. The engine described in the present invention couldbe used for numerous systems and the same procedure describedhereinabove for the 2.5G wireless telecommunications system could beapplied to the 3G wireless system, as well as other systems. The networknodes in the 3G wireless system are separated in a call control networknodes 760, 770, 780 and connectivity control network nodes 790. TheMedia Gateways (MGW)792 will be responsible for all the connectivitymeans, while the call control will be executed by servers in the controllayer. The Control Layer will, in turn, interface to ApplicationGateways, not shown in the figure, allowing an unprecedented level ofseparation of services from specific fixed or mobile bearer technologiesallowing for anyway, anywhere and anytime service delivery. The B2Bengine has the ability to connect to different bearer technologies suchas the GSM/EDGE, WCDMA and cdma2000. The B2B engine also interfaces withall the connectivity and control network nodes that keeps track and/orhave record of the mobile subscriber. The network nodes, nonetheless,are preferably reprogrammed to include a mobility agent, as describedhereinabove with reference to FIGS. 14 and 15.

Also the mobile operator described hereinabove is a GSM operator, itshould be understood by one of ordinary skills in the art that theinvention could be used for a PCS operator, a DAMPS operator or/and anyexisting mobile operator. Moreover, a single B2B engine couldinterconnect various mobile operators with various portals. The mobileoperators could be of a different nature and using a different standard,e.g. a B2B engine could provide service for a PCS operator as well as aGSM operator, concurrently.

Moreover, 3G mobile stations will also have the client application thatwill notify the B2B engine of any update to the user status, similar towhat was described earlier for GSM phones having the client applicationprogrammed on the SIM card in the GSM network. The SIM card as describedabove could be any means in which the Mobile Equipment could have aprogrammable module on it capable of containing applications. The SIMcard described hereinabove, could also be any programmable means that iscapable of storing and performing certain functions, like having a fixedmodule in the mobile station being part of the Mobile Equipment (ME).

It should however be understood to one skilled in the art, that theportal and content aggregators are externally connected to the B2Bengine, as described herein. However, the portal and/or contentaggregators, in a preferred embodiment of the presently claimedinvention, may be incorporated within the B2B engine as well. Meaningthat the B2B engine could be in charge of gathering data content andselectively supplying the data content to the users.

It should be understood to one skilled in the art, that realtimeinformation and realtime networks discussed with reference to theembodiments herein, represent the ideal timing of such networks andinformation disregarding any delays and/or processing in the networknodes and any other equipment. In general, a realtime network may be anynetwork that functions in realtime or near realtime performance. Also,realtime information may be information that is substantially realtimeor near realtime.

Referring now to FIG. 19, another exemplary inter-network diagram inaccordance with the present invention is illustrated generally at 1900.The exemplary inter-network diagram 1900 is illustrated as having aninternet portion 1905 and a telecommunications portion 1910. The servicecapability service (SCS) node 1920 bridges the internet portion 1905 andthe telecommunications portion 1910. The SCS node 1920 (e.g., which maycorrespond to, for example, the B2B engine 210, 364, 410, 458, 520,and/or 660/662, etc. as described in exemplary manners hereinabove)enables one or more telecommunications network operators to providevalue-added services to users by, for example, providing realtimeinformation (e.g., user location, user status, etc.) to one or moreportals_(1 . . . n) 1915 _(1 . . . n). With regard to the internetportion 1905, the SCS 1920 is connected to one or more portals 1915(e.g., which may correspond to, for example, the restaurant information105, the weather information 110, the portals 115/362/420/468/502/640,the servers 260/262/264/266, and/or the content providers 272, etc. asdescribed in exemplary manners hereinabove). The portals 1915 maycorrespond to, for example, internet web sites such as “Yahoo”, otherinformation providing services, computer applications, etc.

With regard to the telecommunications portion 1910, the SCS 1920 isconnected to one or more telecommunications nodes and/or entities (e.g.,which may correspond to, for example, the telecom systems 230, therealtime systems 270, and/or the telecommunications network systems710/730/750, etc. as described in exemplary manners hereinabove). Thesetelecommunications nodes and/or entities include an HLR 1925 (e.g.,which may correspond to, for example, the HLR 610, and/or the HLR 654,etc. as described in exemplary manners hereinabove), an MSC/VLR 1930(e.g., which may correspond to, for example, the MSC/VLR 615, the VLR652, and/or the VLR 664, etc. as described in exemplary mannershereinabove), an MPC 1935 (e.g., which may correspond to, for example,the MPC 630, etc. as described in exemplary manners hereinabove), an ME1940 (e.g., which may correspond to, for example, the MS 430, the MS452, ME 512, ME 554, and/or the mobile 660, etc. as described inexemplary manners hereinabove), etc.

It should be noted that the exemplary inter-network diagram 1900 issimplified so as to facilitate explanation of the principles of thepresent invention without undue obfuscation. For example, thetelecommunications nodes and/or entities to which the SCS 1920 isconnected are exemplary only. More than one of each and more than atotal four may be, and usually will be, connected thereto. Furthermore,other types of telecommunications nodes and/or entities, besides theillustrated HLR 1925, MSC/VLR 1930, MPC 1935, and ME 1940, may also beconnected to the SCS 1920, such as an SMSC (e.g., the SMSC 650 fromFIGS. 16-18). For example, the nodes illustrated in FIG. 18 mayadditionally and/or alternatively be connected to the SCS 1920. Itshould also be noted that the portals 1915 need not be part of orconnected through/to the Internet.

Furthermore, it should be understood that the portals 1915 and thetelecommunications nodes and/or entities 1925/1930/1935/1940 need not beconnected directly to the SCS 1920, for there may be one or moreintervening nodes, switches, servers, gateways, etc. disposedtherebetween. Additionally, the connection between the portals 1915 andthe telecommunications nodes and/or entities 1925/1930/1935/1940 and theSCS 1920 need not be composed entirely, or even partially, of wirelineconnections. For example, the connection between the ME 1940 and the SCS1920 will ordinarily be at least partially realized using a wirelesslink. It should also be understood that the various components of theexemplary inter-network diagram 1900 need not be as discrete asillustrated in FIG. 19. For example, the SCS 1920 may be co-located witha VLR (or, alternatively, see FIG. 15 and related text), one or moreportals 1915 may be co-located with the SCS 1920, one or more portals1915 and the SCS 1920 may be implemented using a single computingplatform/server, etc.

Referring now to FIGS. 20A and 20B, exemplary network aspects related tosubscriber location in accordance with the present invention areillustrated generally at 2000 and 2050, respectively. The exemplarynetwork aspects 2000 includes the SCS 1920 illustrated as connected tothe HLR 1925, the MSC/VLR 1930, the MPC 1935, and the ME 1940. Each ofthese network nodes/entities has location information regarding thesubscriber (unit), can access location information regarding thesubscriber, can measure or cause to be measured the location of thesubscriber, etc. It should be noted that the illustrated networknodes/entities is not exhaustive of those network nodes/entities thatare related to subscriber location. Below certain network nodes/entitiesthat are illustrated in the exemplary network aspects 2000 areapproximate and exemplary accuracies by which the subscriber locationmay be determined by the given node. For example, the HLR 1925 mayascertain the location of the subscriber to within approximately 70-1000meters (e.g., a location area), the ME 1940 may ascertain the locationof the subscriber to within approximately 10-30 meters (e.g., a cellarea), and the MPC 1935 may ascertain the location of the subscriber towithin approximately 0-10 meters (e.g., using time of arrival (TOA)/timedifference of arrival (TDOA) (optionally with triangulation or similar),using a GPS-based determination, etc.), etc. It can therefore beappreciated that the accuracy of the user location that is received bythe SCS 1920 may be affected by the network node/entity selected toprovide the user location.

Continuing now with FIG. 20B, other exemplary network aspects 2050 areillustrated in the context of providing location information to the SCS1920 from a network node/entity 2055 (e.g., the HLR 1925, the MSC/VLR1930, the MPC 1935, the ME 1940, the node/entities of FIG. 18, etc.). Asillustrated on the left, the SCS 1920 may poll a network node/entity2055 for location information, which prompts the network node/entity2055 for a response having the location information. Alternatively, asillustrated on the right, the network node/entity 2055 may proactivelynotify the SCS 1920 of the location information. The proactivenotifications may be accomplished using a logic module(s) (e.g.,detachable or integrated hardware, software, firmware, some combinationthereof, etc. that is appropriately coded or programmed) of the relevantnetwork node/entity 2055.

These logic module(s) (e.g., which may correspond to, for example, theMA 656, the WAP toolkit 432/474, the SIM toolkit 434/454/516, the SIM436/514/556, and/or the SIM application 552, etc. as described inexemplary manners hereinabove) may be set up to provide proactivenotification(s) at, for example, regular intervals, at a locationchange, at a status change, etc. In certain, but not necessarily all,embodiment(s), the poll/response approach may be utilized for the HLR1925 and the MPC 1935 while the proactive approach may be utilized forthe ME 1940. Also in certain embodiment(s), a proprietary (e.g.,proactive or non-proactive) approach and protocol may be utilized withthe MSC/VLR 1930. It can therefore be appreciated that the locationinformation may be provided to the SCS 1920 (i) regularly withoutrepeated requests, (ii) on demand responsive to polling, (iii) using aproprietary approach/protocol, (iv) responsive to the occurrence of apredefined event, etc. However, it is possible that too many spontaneousand proactively-triggered location messages (e.g., like categories (i)and (iv)) may congest, or even overload, the wireless network.

Referring now to FIG. 21, an exemplary network situation with potentialchannel congestion that may be minimized or avoided in accordance withthe present invention is illustrated generally at 2100. The exemplarynetwork situation 2100 occurs in the context of providing locationinformation of multiple MEs 1940 to, for example, a portal 1915. Moreparticularly, each of the illustrated MEs 1940 in the exemplary networksituation 2100 has previously been instructed (e.g., by programming anapplication therein, a SIM card thereof, etc.) to provide locationinformation update messages (e.g., at regular intervals, upon theoccurrence of a stipulated event, when changing cells, etc.). Thelocation information in the location messages may be passed onto one ormore service-providing portals 1915. Each of the illustrated MEs 1940are shown transmitting a proactively-triggered location message 2105.These proactively-triggered location messages 2105 may be transmitted onone or more control channels of the wireless network. Since the controlchannels are a finite network resource, the proactively-triggeredlocation messages 2105 may congest or even overload this finite networkresource.

This network resource may be considered finite on a given level of thenetwork. In other words, because these finite network resources arereused throughout the network there is a quantifiable area that may beanalyzed to determine whether there is congestion. This quantifiablearea may correspond to, for example, a cell, a location area, etc. Tocombat this potential congestion, the SCS 1920 may monitor the number ofproactively-triggered location messages 2105 that it receives (and thathave therefore utilized control channel resources) to determine whetherthere are too many such messages being transmitted in a givenquantifiable area. If there are too many such messages in a givenquantifiable area such as a location area, then the SCS 1920 may takesteps to moderate the transmission activity. An exemplary such step isordering one or more MEs 1940 to reduce or cease transmitting theproactively-triggered location messages 2105.

Referring now to FIG. 22, an exemplary method in flowchart form forminimizing or avoiding network channel congestion in accordance with thepresent invention is illustrated generally at 2200. The exemplaryflowchart 2200 is directed to a scheme for modulating the number ofproactively-triggered location messages per quantifiable area in orderto reduce or eliminate congestion resulting from the implementation ofan SCS within a wireless network. In other words, it is preferable toprevent the SCS from impacting a wireless network to such an extent thatthe underlying or core communication features are significantly harmed.The SCS determines a total number of proactively-triggered locationmessages that are received from a given region of a network, such asfrom a location area (step 2205). This determination may beaccomplished, for example, by measuring/accumulating the number of suchlocation messages that are received.

This determined total number is compared to a threshold (step 2210). Thethreshold, which may be defined as a number of proactive-triggers perunit of time in a given region, may be determined (and adjusted) basedon network characteristics. For example, a default threshold setting maybe derived/dimensioned based on the capability of the SCS. The thresholdcan then be adjusted when the control channel is too congestedresponsive, e.g., to the total number of subscribers within the givenregion. If the total number is not determined to be greater than thethreshold (in step 2210), then the SCS may merely wait for the nextphase or cycle (step 2220). It should be noted that this waiting periodmay be zero for the monitoring and accumulating may simply constantlyreset in step 2205.

If, on the other hand, the total number is determined to be greater thanthe threshold (in step 2210), then the SCS may select one or more MEs tobe ordered to lower the number of proactively-triggered locationmessages that it or they are transmitting (step 2225). The ME(s) may beordered to reduce or eliminate the transmissions, depending on the levelof congestion and the importance of the location messagetransmission(s). The importance may be defined in a manner similar tohow certain MEs may be selected from all MEs for lowering of the numberof location message transmissions (in step 2225). The MEs may beselected based on, for example, respective service level agreements.Higher (e.g., usually costing more) service levels are generally notselected to be ordered for message transmission reduction, at leastinitially. In contradistinction, MEs that are sending more locationmessage transmissions than average may be selected for messagetransmission reduction. As an additional example, the frequency at whichexternal applications (e.g., those of the portals 1915) actually desireupdated location information may influence the selection process. MEsthat are frequently sending location messages to the SCS for anapplication that does not need such frequency may therefore be selectedfor message transmission reduction.

After MEs have been selected for message transmission reduction, the SCSmay send an order to each of them to lower the number ofproactively-triggered location messages that are being transmitted.Thereafter, the scheme may proceed to optional step 2220. It should benoted that an additional step may be included along arrow 2215 in whichMEs that have previously been ordered to reduce the number of locationmessage transmissions may be permitted to increase the number of suchtransmissions once the total number of proactively-triggered locationmessages falls below the threshold (minus a hysteris value).

As will be recognized by those skilled in the art, the innovativeconcepts described in the present application can be modified and variedover a wide range of applications. Accordingly, the scope of patentedsubject matter should not be limited to any of the specific exemplaryteachings discussed, but is instead defined by the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for reducing telecommunications networkcongestion, comprising the steps of: monitoring received locationmessages that are transmitted from a plurality of mobile equipment, thereceived location messages being transmitted from the plurality ofmobile equipment responsive to a plurality of requests from an externalservice provider; determining a total number of received locationmessages responsive to said step of monitoring; comparing the totalnumber of received location messages to a predetermined threshold; ifthe total number of received location messages exceeds the predeterminedthreshold, then selecting at least one mobile equipment from theplurality of mobile equipment; and p2 ordering the at least one mobileequipment to lower the number of location messages being transmittedtherefrom.
 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the method isperformed by a telecommunications node, the telecommunications nodecomprising a service capability service that interfaces with a pluralityof external service providers.
 3. The method according to claim 1,wherein the external service provider comprises an internet-basedportal.
 4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the receivedlocation messages monitored in said step of monitoring are limited to aspecified geographic area.
 5. The method according to claim 4, whereinthe specified geographic area comprises at least one of a cell and alocation area.
 6. The method according to claim 1, wherein said step ofordering the at least one mobile equipment to lower the number oflocation messages being transmitted therefrom comprises the step ofordering the at least one mobile equipment to cease transmittinglocation messages therefrom.
 7. The method according to claim 1, whereinsaid step of selecting at least one mobile equipment from the pluralityof mobile equipment comprises the step of selecting more than one mobileequipment from the plurality of mobile equipment.
 8. The methodaccording to claim 1, further comprising the step of: transmitting, bythe plurality of mobile equipment, a plurality of location messagesperiodically at a given frequency responsive to the plurality ofrequests from the external service provider.
 9. The method according toclaim 1, wherein said step of ordering the at least one mobile equipmentto lower the number of location messages being transmitted therefromcomprises the step of ordering the at least one mobile equipment totransmit location messages therefrom periodically at another frequency,the another frequency being lower than the given frequency.
 10. Themethod according to claim 1, wherein said step of selecting at least onemobile equipment from the plurality of mobile equipment comprises thestep of selecting the at least one mobile equipment based, at leastpartly, on a service level agreement associated with the at least onemobile equipment, the service level agreement being related to a qualityof service.
 11. The method according to claim 1, wherein said step ofselecting at least one mobile equipment from the plurality of mobileequipment comprises the step of selecting the at least one mobileequipment based, at least partly, on a frequency at which the at leastone mobile equipment was previously transmitting location messages. 12.A method for controlling traffic congestion in a location area of awireless network, comprising the steps of: requesting a plurality ofmobile equipment within the location area to provide locationinformation whenever their respective locations change; receivingpackets that include location information from at least a portion of theplurality of mobile equipment, the location information identifying therespective locations; monitoring a traffic level associated with thereceived packets; determining whether the monitored traffic levelexceeds a predetermined threshold; and if so, instructing at least someof the plurality of mobile equipment to cease providing locationinformation when their respective locations change.
 13. The methodaccording to claim 12, wherein the predetermined threshold is setresponsive to a total number of mobile equipment within the locationarea.
 14. The method according to claim 12, wherein said step ofrequesting is performed responsive to a transaction agreement with anexternal, non-telecommunications service provider.
 15. The methodaccording to claim 12, wherein the at least some of the plurality ofmobile equipment are associated with a lower service level agreement ascompared to the other mobile equipment of the plurality of mobileequipment.
 16. An arrangement for reducing telecommunications networkcongestion, comprising: means for monitoring received location messagesthat are transmitted from a plurality of mobile equipment, the receivedlocation messages being transmitted from the plurality of mobileequipment responsive to a plurality of requests from an external serviceprovider; means for determining a total number of received locationmessages, said means for determining in communication with said meansfor monitoring; means for comparing the total number of receivedlocation messages to a predetermined threshold, said means for comparingin communication with said means for determining; and means forselecting at least one mobile equipment from the plurality of mobileequipment and for ordering the at least one mobile equipment to lowerthe number of location messages being transmitted therefrom, said meansfor selecting and ordering operating if the total number of receivedlocation messages exceeds the predetermined threshold.